naptime

Ultiamtely, Félix felt challenged to engage her a little more. Playing well was one thing, but if she didn't feel for the music then it was a bit of a failure all the same. He smiled nonetheless, not one to disregard to compliment out of some misplaced arrogance.

“You could always try singing. The voice is an instrument all the same, and hard to put out of commission, so to speak.” Not everyone had a completely perfect voice right off the bad. Some people could sing technically perfectly, but at the same time have a very boring voice. Others had flawed voices, but made up for it in interesting and novels ways. It just took practice like anything else.

“Here, let's try a song.” Félix <a href='https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kR_gptur56I&t=5m56s' target='_blank' rel='nofollow'>started up the piano again</a>, improvising a little as he got his rhythm. Once he was ready, he started to sing. It was energetic, but surely a single song wouldn't cause that much trouble?

“Let me know if you feel, uh, funny.” Félix tried his best not to worry her too much.

If it did start to make her feel, she'd find her emotions escalating far quicker than she'd expec. Just like a snowball downhill, one might not notice it until it was too large to stop.

<OOC: Route 66 only>

Félix kept an eye on Leticia the whole time. It was still enormously difficult to gauge when his voice would take effect on someone, as everyone reacted to it a little differently and at different timing. Even for all the power his voice had, Félix still kept his singing guarded and controlled.

When Letty pressed her hands against her head, Félix immediately stopped playing. It was already too much for her, and Félix instantly regretting trying this altogether.

“Leticia? It'll be okay.” The emotions never ceased immediately. Even natural highs and lows did not vanish once their catalysts vanished from their mind and presence. Félix could see her shivering and struggling, and quickly tried to come up with something to help her.

The best he could think of was to hug Leticia and hold her until it passed. He really hoped she wouldn't butt him, but Félix probably deserved it for his arrogance and stupidity. He put her in danger, just like he predicted.

“It will pass. Try to breathe slowly.” Félix fumbled for some solution. It would be another few minutes before she could feel calm again, but it would come eventually in the silence of that room.

<OOC: Yeah, that works quite well.>

There was a bleak hope that it wouldn't come on so fast, or that maybe it wouldn't come at all. But there was no variance to the effect of his power, not in the way it came on to people. Some weren't affected for a short while, others could be influenced in just a short minute. Félix never had a good gauge for it. He hated using it, and he would rarely dare practise it outside of desperation.

“I thought I could stop it,” Félix frowned. He hugged her tighter, trying to distract her emotional suffering with something a little more pleasing. After a while, he could feel her respond a bit better. He slackened as she managed to breathe easier.

“My voice plays with emotions. Makes them uncontrollably stronger. I don't know how to control it,” he admitted. Félix frowned, his eyes weary with a familiar sadness. “That's why I can't sing.”

He let go of Leticia eventually, resting his hands on his lap. Félix seemed apologetic, “Perhaps it's best I go,” he suggested in regret.

Félix was surprised Letty would want him around after that, but he could understand if she had no one else to go to right now. It was disturbingly fascinating to see her personality shift a little, from someone just under Félix's age to one more akin to a child. He believed he caused more damage than he first thought. For that, he felt immeasurably guilty.

“I'm sorry,” Félix apologized more for what he did than for what he directed it, “I don't really know any stories.” Not one a teenager would be interested in hearing. Or even a child, ultimately. Maybe he could think of something he did in his own life, something cheerful. But even that had him focus more on the worst days of his life than anything encouraging.

“I'm not very good at the cheering up part,” Félix sighed loudly. His fists clenched in exasperation for a brief moment, before he relaxed and reached out to Letty again. His hand rested on hers, providing a token hint of warmth. He smiled weakly, “I won't leave until you feel better, though.”

Good lord, what did this girl eat? She reacted like a hyperactive kid fed too many carbohydrates, bouncing in her crib in excessive rage when her father could not stay awake long enough to play. Did she not hear Félix, or did she refuse to hear him? Even if Félix had a story to tell her, would she even want to hear it?

“Alright, alright, just let me think...” The only stories Félix knew were about himself, really. Was there anything interesting to tell about himself? There were certainly many stories he absolutely did not want out in the open.

Félix sighed. His best bet was just to talk about himself. “I am from a noble family, the Tenebres. My ancestors fled France during the first Revolution and settled in Québec. From there, we lived in peace.” Félix wondered if it was too much to explain the curse. But it was important to tell.

“There is a curse upon my family. The firstborn son and his progeny are all possessed by supernatural creatures. We slowly fuse together with our possessor. I am the firstborn heir of the Tenebre family. That's where my power comes from.

“From birth, I was quite literally destined to become a monster.” Félix frowned, his voice trailing away. “I don't know what has possessed me, but I know I cannot resist its influence forever. Every night I lie in bed wondering if I will still wake up as myself.”

That wasn't exactly a happy story, but Félix didn't have many of those. It was also a story he had yet to discover its ending.